From: b f farmer
Subject: barefoot vacation
Date: Thu, 8 Dec 2005 10:05:53 -0800

My wife and I, along with two other couples, rented a house on the beach in
central Calif. for a few days. The two couples have been friends of ours
for quite awhile, but we had never spent more time together than dinner or
a backyard barbecue. On these occasions I have been barefoot with no
comment.

On this occasion I had no shoes with me, except for emergency flip flops
under the car seat, and nothing was made of my barefeet since we were at
the beach. However, we went out to dinner twice. Once into a nice seafood
restaurant in Morro Bay, and again into San Luis Obispo to the elegant and
well-known Madonna Inn, www.madonnainn.com. At first they were
astonished that I was going barefoot. Then it became a joke and a
challenge. A bet was made that if I got chastised and kicked out I had to
pay for drinks. If I made it in, they paid. At first it was paying for
the whole dinner, but I wasn't that confident! For a few minutes I
envisioned myself sitting outside on a rock, peering thru the window at
them enjoying their meal.

Amazingly, with long jeans and a nice shirt I entered both restaurants with
no problem. Seated and had a very enjoyable meal. They joked about
planning some sabotage, but that would have nullified the bet.

So my wife and I had free drinks on both occasions.

Our days were spent on the beach or checking out the local nursery and
gardens, art galleries, walking on the pier, and kayaking on the bay. I
never wore shoes the whole time, which further added to their amazement.

Since most of my days are spent working in a solitary, and barefoot,
situation, this was the first time I had lived with and socialized with
friends and stayed barefoot. It actually added to the fun time we spent
together. They're still talking about our restaurant episodes to friends.

So, all new SBL members who are a little hesitant about being barefoot in
public, I was there just a couple years ago. I never envisioned myself
going barefoot everywhere. The sky hasn't fallen, and I haven't lost all
my marbles! I feel great, and I love every day! Every day is a new
experience. A new sensation of texture and temperature.

Joe Michael